Even Jesus Christ Rejects National Israel

Even Jesus Christ rejected the notion that a future, secular nation/state would have any significant relevance for the future of His kingdom. Jesus, because He is God, knew that He would be rejected by those He was sent to and that eventually those that were outside of this and yet wished to join themselves to God the Father would do so through His Son, Jesus Christ.

Let's study this important parable to find out how and why Jesus spoke what He did to the Pharisees:

Matthew 21:33 Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country:

The householder in this parable, as in all the other parables that mention the householder, speaks of God the Father. In creating the earth and all that is in it He is the householder and the One that planted the vineyard. The vineyard in this case are those people that God has planted and continues to plant to this day that hear Him and abide with Him. See Isaiah 61:3. The vine, if there was any doubt, is Jesus Christ (John 15:1).

21:34 And when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it.

The servants that God the Father sent to the husbandmen, those in charge of keeping the vineyard in order, were the prophets of the Old Testament that spoke to the Children of Israel of the coming Messiah.

21:35 And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.

Here, Jesus specifically reminds those who He was speaking to what had actually happened to a number of the prophets that God sent to the Children of Israel. Jeremiah was stoned, as was Habakkuk and Zechariah was slain with the sword by Joash.

21:36 Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.

Jesus here is re-emphasizing what He said in verse 35.

21:37 But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.

This is more than obvious that Jesus here is talking about Himself.

21:38 But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.

Jesus is simply predicting what happened in His day when the Son of God came and was killed by the Pharisees.

21:39 And they caught him, and cast [him] out of the vineyard, and slew [him].

See above.

21:40 When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen?

Jesus asks those whom He was speaking to a very important and pointed question that we must ask ourselves. When God the Father returns to see what has happened to His vineyard what will He do?

21:41 They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out [his] vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.

Do you desire to be a part of that "other husbandmen?" By accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and abiding with Him you personally become part of the other husbandmen and will render to Jesus the fruits in their seasons.

21:42 Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?

This is a direct reference to Psalms 118:22 and Isaiah 28:16. Jesus is constantly refered to as a rock or stone in both the Old and New Testaments.

21:43 Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.

Jesus plainly declares here that the Kingdom of God, which is found within the heart of each and every man and woman (Luke 17:21), would be taken away from those that were responsible to share the great and wonderful blessings of God the Father and eventually given to another. This fact is made even more clear in the Book of Acts when the Jews of that day found themselves unworthy of eternal life and thus the preaching of the Kingdom of God went to the gentiles.

Acts 13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

21:44 And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

In other words, when we voluntarily fall on that stone, that precious corner stone of Jesus Christ, we see our weakness and just how helpless we really are. Thus we realize how broken we are. And yet, if we resist that power of Jesus Christ and allow that stone to fall on us, it will grind one to powder.

21:45 And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them.

Jesus was indeed speaking to them.

The Bible and Christian thought is not a "new" religion but merely an extension of the old ways of the Israelite teachings that were meant to direct the observer to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the Savior that He would send and in our case, has sent.